Vick, other Peninsula connections, on unfamiliar turf early in NFL season

Michael Vick

Elsa / Getty Images

PHILADELPHIA, PA - AUGUST 15: Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks to pass to LeSean McCoy #25 in the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers on August 15, 2013 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennslyvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 173354708

PHILADELPHIA, PA - AUGUST 15: Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks to pass to LeSean McCoy #25 in the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers on August 15, 2013 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennslyvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 173354708 (Elsa / Getty Images)

We're just two weeks in, and pro football is the chameleon of sports leagues, but those early trends have transported the Peninsula's most visible NFL connections — Jerod Mayo, Mike Tomlin and Michael Vick — to foreign territory.

A two-time Pro Bowl linebacker from Kecoughtan High and the University of Tennessee, Mayo has been a New England staple — think chowder and lobster rolls — since 2008, when he was the NFL's defensive rookie of the year. The Patriots' defense has been top-flight since but always had a potent offense to cushion any falls, even in 2008 when Matt Cassel replaced the irreplaceable and injured Tom Brady at quarterback.

Not so this season. At least not yet. With Brady's receiving corps shredded by injuries and personnel changes, New England is tied for 25th among 32 league teams in scoring at 18 points per game and ranks 28th in yards per play at 4.3 — last season's averages were 34.8 and 5.7.

Still, the Patriots stand 2-0 after edging the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets, and Pro Bowl tight end Rob Gronkowski (arm and back, but not head, shoulders, knees and toes) is expected to return either this week against Tampa Bay or the following versus Atlanta.

Conversely, the Steelers are 0-2 for the first time in Tomlin's seven seasons as head coach after Monday night's 20-10 loss at Cincinnati. An 0-2 start is hardly cause for panic — Washington was 3-6 last season before winning seven straight to claim the NFC East — but without center Maurkice Pouncey, who's done for the year with a knee injury, and with no elite running back or receiver, it's fair to wonder whether Pittsburgh's offense is beyond repair.

One possible tonic: the impending return of Pro Bowl tight end Heath Miller, a former Virginia All-American, from knee surgery. He's not only a reliable target for quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, but also a capable blocker for a running game that without him has managed a meager 75 yards in two games.

"We're not expecting Heath to step out of a phone booth with a cape on," Tomlin said Tuesday at his weekly news conference, according to ESPN.com.

Tomlin has guided the Steelers to a pair of Super Bowls, winning one, but his squad missed the playoffs last season at 8-8 and a second consecutive miss would be a franchise first for the first time since 1999 and 2000.

"There's a certain amount of misery with the position that we're in," the ever-stoic Tomlin told reporters Monday night. "We'll wear it. We don't like it. We'll wear it."

Pittsburgh's state rival, the Eagles, scored more points in the first half of their season-opener at Washington (26) than the Steelers have scored this season (19). Indeed, Sunday's 33-30 home loss to San Diego did little to temper the buzz about new coach Chip Kelly's frantic offense and its potential with Vick at quarterback.

Vick is completing 62.3 percent of his passes, far above his career mark of 56.4, and has yet to throw an interception. He's posted back-to-back passer ratings of 110 or above for the first time as a pro, and his 428 yards against the Chargers marked a career best.

At 119.0, Vick's rating trails only Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers, and his 13 completions of 20-plus yards and three of 40-plus lead the league.

Vick is surrounded by quality skill players such as LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson, and appears comfortable with Kelly's schemes and tempo. As for much of his career, the prevailing question is health.

Can Vick, 33, avoid the punishing and/or awkward hits that have short-circuited previous seasons? This much is certain: It would have been fun to see Vick in his prime running this offense.

Finally, it would be derelict to overlook another Hampton Roads quarterback: the Bills' EJ Manuel, a rookie from Florida State and Virginia Beach's Bayside High.

He acquitted himself well in an opening loss to New England before driving Buffalo 80 yards, without a timeout, for a game-winning, last-second touchdown — he threw a 2-yard pass to Stevie Johnson for the decisive score — against Carolina.

"I think I started crying there," Manuel told NFL.com after presenting the game ball to his dad in the stands. "I'm not usually an emotional guy, but like I said, I want to enjoy those type of things. I'll be able to tell my grandkids about that 20, 30 years from now."

David Teel can be reached at 757-247-4636 or by email at dteel@dailypress.com. For more from Teel, read his blog at dailypress.com/ teeltime and follow him at twitter.com/DavidTeelatDP